Reports: Bulls trade Jerian Grant for Julyan Stone in 3-team deal

Jerian Grant is no longer in contention to be the Chicago Bulls’ point guard of the future.

To recap the part of the trade that pertains to the Bulls: they give up Jerian Grant and receive Julyan Stone. The latter player, who is a UTEP grad, has been in and out of the NBA since 2011 and has averaged 1.1 points per game in 70 career games.

Like seemingly everything the Bulls do, this was a money-saving maneuver. Grant was owed $2.64 million next season and had a $3.76 million qualifying offer in 2019-2020. Stone has a non-guaranteed $1.65 million deal (Aug. 1 guaranteed date) and will be waived, per NBC Sports Chicago’s Vincent Goodwill.

According to ESPN writer Bobby Marks, the Bulls will have $16 million of cap room if they waive Stone and release Noah Vonleh’s cap hold.

Quick Thoughts:

• The Bulls open up a roster spot (assuming they waive Stone) and save $2.6 million in cap space this season. Could this foreshadow a move to come this summer?
• For better or worse, the move suggests that the Bulls have now committed to Cameron Payne as their backup point guard of the future.
• Grant wasn’t great during his time with the Bulls. But he outplayed or at least matched Payne (in my humble opinion) during their time with the Bulls, and it seems silly how Payne is “the Bulls’ guy” while Grant is the odd man out.